The State government is waiting to gauge the mood of the Supreme Court in the Maradu apartments case, which will be taken up on Monday, to finalise its strategies.
Though the government is in possession of different legal opinions provided by some senior Supreme Court lawyers, the ideal one would be picked up after assessing the outcome of the court proceedings. If the court accepts the affidavit filed by the Chief Secretary on September 20, the State may be able to ask for time for implementing the court verdict, indicated a senior government official.
After the all-party meeting, the Chief Minister had stated that the government would explore all legal possibilities in the case. The possibility of the government filing a review petition and the Environment Department, through the Ministry of Environment and Forest and Climate Change, moving the court could also be explored. A curative petition had also reached the court, he said.
Meanwhile, the Maradu municipality has sought expert opinion on “remedial measures” to be taken while demolishing the four apartments.
The secretary of the local body has written to the director of the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras; director of the National Institute of Technology, Kozhikode; and the Vice Chancellor of the Cochin University of Science and Technology; seeking reports on seven aspects, including the selection of the suitable methodology to raze the buildings.
A technical team is required to “study the method and select a suitable methodology from the agencies,” which had responded to the Expression of Interest (EoI) floated by it. Tender proceedings had to be initiated, said the letter by secretary M. Mohammad Arif Khan. As many as 15 agencies had responded to the EoI.
The local body said a thorough study was required regarding the Coastal Regulation Zone and environment issues, rapid environment impact assessment, a risk assessment report and another one on the notified ecologically sensitive areas in the wake of the proposed demolition.
It had has sought help for analysing the structural design of the four buildings to “find a strategy for controlled implosion.” While indicating that the demolition can cause hindrances and damages to roads and waterways, the local body wanted suggestions on “risk management measures” in a region of 500 metres. It also hoped to get insights into the preventive measures to be adopted considering the risks involved in the demolition.
